CTO: Travel Arrivals Back to 2008 Levels

According to a published report on regional tourism, stayover arrivals to the Caribbean are back to 2008 levels. The relevant statistics were compiled by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO).

The region saw a 4.7 percent rise in visitor arrivals this year. An estimated 23.1 million tourists stopped by, up from 22.1 million in 2009. Winfield Griffith, CTO director of research and information technology was quoted as stating that the arrival figure “takes us back to the peak arrival levels we recorded in 2008.”

In particular, cruise tourism experienced a big rise, registering a 6 percent jump. The hotel sector saw a slight 1 percent rise in occupancy, and a 5 percent increase in total room revenues.

CTO stats indicated that the 13 CARICOM nations recorded a 4 percent rise over last year. In the OECS (Organization of Eastern Caribbean States), Anguilla and St. Lucia led the way with double-digit increases.

Curacao experienced an 8 percent drop in visitors in the first three quarters, causing a marginal decrease in the Dutch Caribbean stats. The Spanish-speaking Caribbean saw a 6 percent increase, during the noted period.